Press Release
Luxembourg, 28 February 2024
• Regular reporting on the rule of law is an important preventive step
• The European Commission’s methodology and assessment approach could be clarified
• Recommendations from the report have so far seen little uptake in member states
Since 2020, the annual ‘Rule of Law Report’ has been one of the EU’s various tools for upholding the rule of law in member states. It is a preventive measure, designed to monitor developments across the bloc and facilitate early solutions. In a review published today, the European Court of Auditors looks into the Report, highlighting not only the challenge of ensuring synergy with the rest of the tools, but also the low implementation rate of the Report’s recommendations for member states.
The Report reflects the European Commission’s own assessment and opinion on significant rule-of-law developments in EU countries. It focuses on four thematic areas: justice systems, the anti-corruption framework, media pluralism and freedom, and other institutional issues relating to checks and balances. As the Report is not legally binding, it relies on member states cooperating in good faith. Since 2022, the Report has also included recommendations for member states, which the Commission then follows up to assess how far they have been implemented.
“The rule of law is a core principle of the European Union, and it is vital for it to be strictly upheld. However, researchers, civil society, and international organisations have reported backsliding on the rule of law, and even systematic breaches in some member states, so the EU has reacted by increasing its scrutiny”, notes Laima Liucija Andrikienė, the ECA member responsible for the review. “As the EU’s auditors, we report that from 2022 to 2023, only a tenth of the Rule of Law Report’s recommendations were fully implemented, a little more than half were implemented at least partially, but more than a third saw no progress whatsoever.”
The auditors also note that some recommendations may require a concerted effort over several years to implement and they acknowledge the key role played by member states. The Report is annual, and only provides updates on developments over the previous year. However, with its upcoming fifth edition, the auditors point to the opportunity to capture wider multiannual trends in the rule-of-law landscape.
In addition, the auditors identify opportunities to improve the evidence trail for the assessment process to document better how the European Commission decides which issues to look into and how it classifies their level of seriousness. Also, the terminology used to classify rule-of-law issues in the Report differs from the terms used by other EU rule-of-law tools. For example, a ‘serious concern’ in the Rule of Law Report is not equivalent to a ‘serious and persistent breach of values’ under the Article 7 TEU procedure, or to a ‘breach of the principles of the rule of law’ under the Conditionality Regulation.
Lastly, the auditors highlight an opportunity to make the methodology the Commission uses to prepare the Report more transparent. Although part of the methodology is publicly available, it could be developed and disclosed further so as to allow interested parties to understand the assessment approach better.
Background information
The rule of law is a universal principle of governance, and one of the founding values of the EU. To promote and uphold the rule of law, the EU uses various procedures, measures, and instruments. The European Commission’s annual Rule of Law Reportis one of the most recent tools, and was issued for the first time in 2020.
Review 02/2024 explains the Report’s role in the EU’s rule-of-law toolbox, and how it is produced and followed up. It aims to facilitate understanding of the Report’s place in the wider EU rule-of-law landscape. It is not an audit report, but a review that is based on publicly available information and material collected specifically for this purpose. It does not seek to provide assurance, or to formulate new recommendations.
Review 02/2024 “The Commission’s rule-of-law reporting” is available on the ECA website, and complements special report 03/2024on the rule-of-law framework to protect the EU’s financial interests that was published on 22 February.
Press contact
ECA press office: press@eca.europa.eu
— Vincent Bourgeais:vincent.bourgeais@eca.europa.eu – M: (+352) 691 551 502
— Damijan Fišer: damijan.fiser@eca.europa.eu – M: (+352) 621 552 224